Return to Transcripts main page
CNN 10
Fake Image Claiming to Show an Explosion Near The Pentagon; Conservation Efforts in Argentina. Aired 4-4:10a ET
Aired May 24, 2023 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COY WIRE, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hello, lovely people. Wonderful Wednesday to you. We`re halfway through to a week, and we`re going to keep on grinding and
shining because that`s just what we do. I`m Coy. This is CNN 10, the best 10 minutes in news.
Remember to keep your ear out today for your vocab word in today`s show. We begin today through the confusion in the nation`s capital. Check out this
photo. Looks pretty real, right? Well, it`s not. This fake image appears to show a major explosion near the Pentagon, but experts say the image has all
the makings of being generated by AI or artificial intelligence.
It was even shared by numerous verified Twitter accounts with blue check marks, including one falsely claiming it was associated with Bloomberg
News. The fake image from the fake account posted, "Large Explosion near The Pentagon Complex in Washington, D.C. -- Initial Report.
Well, local officials were cognizant of these false reports, and they confirmed that no such incident occurred. And experts said the building in
the image doesn`t even closely resemble the Pentagon. The Fire Department in Arlington, Virginia responded in a tweet stating that the department and
the Pentagon Forest Protection Agency were, "aware of a social media report circulating online about an explosion near the Pentagon." There is no
explosion or incident taking place at or near the Pentagon reservation, and there is no immediate danger or hazards to the public."
Now, this mayhem and confusion even impacted the stock market, with Wall Street seeing a brief dip during the trading day. This fake image even
tricked some international news outlets. False reports making their way to air on major Indian television network Republic TV.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Explosion reported near Pentagon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: Which cited reports from the Russian news outlet RT. The news outlet later retracted that report when it became clear that the incident never
took place. Our Donie O`Sullivan has more on this viral hoax.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONIE O`SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There`s two parts of this, right? There`s, first is Elon Musk`s Twitter. And a lot of your viewers might
remember the whole saga about the blue check marks on Twitter, the verified checkmarks. Musk has basically taken all of those away and is selling them
now to people who want to get a blue check mark.
So whereas before, if you had a blue tick on Twitter, it meant that Twitter had verified you are the person or the organization you`re claiming to be.
That`s not really the case. So what happened this morning was somebody posted using an account that they claimed was linked to the Bloomberg News
organization, posting that AI generated image and claiming there had been some kind of explosion at the Pentagon. That then got shared across
multiple other verified accounts that we saw it on other platforms, too. It looked quite coordinated, but we don`t know right now who pushed this.
Multiple experts we`ve spoken to and others who have observed this online say that that is an image generated by artificial intelligence. And you can
see there particularly people who are familiar with Washington that the building in the picture is not the Pentagon. But, you know, it just goes to
show, even with a crude fake like this and some verified accounts on Twitter, that, you know, you could still cause a lot of trouble.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: Ten second trivia.
In what country would find the highest point in the Western Hemisphere?
Ecuador, Argentina, United States or Canada?
Argentina is your answer here. Aconcagua is a mountain part of the Andes mountains, rising to around 22,000 feet.
All right. Argentina has a massive, nearly 2-million-acre park called Ibera National Park, with thousands of plant and animal species and now they`re
reintroducing the largest cats on the continent, jaguars. Awesome cats like the Collegiate Cougars in Richmond, Virginia.
Now, bringing these jaguars back to the park`s ecosystem is part of the restoration or rewilding efforts happening there. Our Bill Weir has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BILL WEIR, CNN CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: In the upper right corner of Argentina, you will find a lush land brimming with life, a park called
Ibera, the home to 4000 species of plants and animals. Near the very top of that intricate food chain and vital to keeping it balanced, is the majestic
jaguar. But until 2021, the biggest cat in South America had not been seen in the wild here for 70 years.
KRISTINE TOMPKINS, PRESIDENT AND CO-FOUNDER TOMPKINS CONSERVATION: When we decided to try to reintroduce jaguars back into the Ibera ecosystem, we had
to first understand what happened to them in the first place? So we went back in, it`s not hard to find. And you see why there are no jaguars left
in this 2-million-acre territory.
Kris and Doug Tompkins made a fortune in adventure gear and fashion, but now hold the legacy of launching what Chris calls a world first breeding
program aimed at reintroducing keystone species back into the region.
TOMPKINS: Almost eleven years later, now we have between 14 and 18 jaguars living in the wild and we have seven individuals who are sort of on deck to
be released.
WEIR: It`s the fruit of a labor Kris and Doug began Decades ago when they traded in high powered lives and fashion for a cabin off the grid, deep in
Patagonia.
TOMPKINS: The roots of Tompkins conservation sprouted when Doug, after a really successful business career, went back to Chile and Argentina in the
early 90s, looking for a way to give back to the two countries he loved so much. And to help nature begin to heal itself.
WEIR: Doug`s vision involved a rewilding approach to conservation, and he began by buying up millions of acres, turning ranches back into grassland
and forest, and then giving it all away with the creation of new, National Parks.
TOMPKINS: To create the system where species that have gone missing have the space and the safety to come back and not be extincted again.
WEIR: Along with its offshoots Rewilding Argentina and Rewilding Chile, Tompkins conservation has conserved around 15 million acres over the last
three decades. And after tragically losing her husband Doug to a kayaking accident in 2015, Kris Tompkins carries on the dream.
This Photograph is a picture of Doug and me flying in the little plane, which we did nearly every day, and really understanding the territories
that we were becoming interested in and would eventually develop as national parks.
WEIR: To date, their donated land has inspired the creation or expansion of 15 national parks. And in addition to the jaguar, they`ve successfully
reintroduced 13 other species, like the giant anteater, collared peccary and pampas deer. So here`s an example of community members. A species that
had gone extinct and is back now, and a team member that tells the whole story. Rescuing an orphaned anteater cub.
TOMPKINS: Come on, boy, let`s go.
I feel extraordinary pride for what we`ve done so far, but I`m definitely not satisfied. I`m happy about the past, but I am completely focused on the
future. What will we be talking about in 10 years? So we can elevate ourselves because of what`s been done in the past. What can we do now? What
are we doing now?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: A runaway cow sprinting alongside traffic is today`s story getting a 10 out of 10 drivers had to move out of the way as a bodacious bovine
barreled on by leaving people completely bumfuzzled along a Michigan highway. It was a high-speed chase with high stakes. You`ve seen Jeep
Wranglers on the road before, but how about this type of wrangler? A cowboy, complete with a lasso, reigning in the rambling runner. Did you
know cows can run up to about 25 miles per hour? That cow was milking its freedom for all it was worth. Utterly amazing. Hey, what do you call a cow
with no legs? Ground beef.
So many great Your Word Wednesday submissions yesterday. Winners are Atirza (ph) and Lily and Stacy from Wilcox Academy for bumfuzzled, an adjective
meaning confused or perplexed.
And from Arthur Hills High in Saginaw, Michigan, cognizant, an adjective meaning having knowledge of or being aware of. Well done. We hope that you
are all cognizant of the fact that we`re thankful for you.
Our special shout out goes Taylor Reed (ph) Middle School in Alpharetta, Georgia. Rise up, go out and make someone smile today. All right. I`m Coy
Wire and we are CNN 10.
END
